MANIFESTO - Initial research
Dieter Rams is my all time favourite designer and writer of the ‘10 Principles of Good Design’ This was the first real design manifesto that I was ever made aware of and one that I still like to reference today.
1
Good design is innovative
The possibilities for innovation are not, by any means, exhausted. Technological development is always offering new opportunities for innovative design. But innovative design always develops in tandem with innovative technology, and can never be an end in itself.
2
Good design makes a product useful
A product is bought to be used. It has to satisfy certain criteria, not only functional, but also psychological and aesthetic. Good design emphasises the usefulness of a product whilst disregarding anything that could possibly detract from it.
3
Good design is aesthetic
The aesthetic quality of a product is integral to its usefulness because products we use every day affect our person and our well-being. But only well-executed objects can be beautiful.
4
Good design makes a product understandable
It clarifies the product’s structure. Better still, it can make the product talk. At best, it is self-explanatory.
5
Good design is unobtrusive
Products fulfilling a purpose are like tools. They are neither decorative objects nor works of art. Their design should therefore be both neutral and restrained, to leave room for the user’s self-expression.
6
Good design is honest
It does not make a product more innovative, powerful or valuable than it really is. It does not attempt to manipulate the consumer with promises that cannot be kept.
7
Good design is long-lasting
It avoids being fashionable and therefore never appears antiquated. Unlike fashionable design, it lasts many years – even in today’s throwaway society.
8
Good design is thorough down to the last detail
Nothing must be arbitrary or left to chance. Care and accuracy in the design process show respect towards the user.
9
Good design is environmentally-friendly
Design makes an important contribution to the preservation of the environment. It conserves resources and minimises physical and visual pollution throughout the lifecycle of the product.
10
Good design is as little design as possible
Less, but better – because it concentrates on the essential aspects, and the products are not burdened with non-essentials.
Back to purity, back to simplicity.
Another that I have found recently was more of a set of rules applying to one particular product than a general design manifesto. However I remember it well as I think that they are great rules for general design as they highlight a lot of visual aesthetics that I really like and would love to see more of in everyday design. I went to see a talk on print design by Paul Willoughby, former creative director of ‘Little White Lies’ Magazine. He was talking about his new publication “Weapons of Reason’ and explained the rigid set of rules that are enforced on design of the magazine. These are:
No gradients
No texture
No tints, only pure colour
No use of different colours to the WoR palette
No drop shadows (“cuz drop shadows are shot”)
No needless embellishment, just clean thinking and essential mark-making
You can see the impact these six simple rules have on the look and feel of the publication. They create a bold, bright, and uniform appearance to the magazine making it a confident and engaging piece of material.
